Hold my hand, I want you to hold my hand

I heard this song a long time ago, I think it was by Hootie and The Blowfish. This line kept running in my head as we entered and walked through the Medina at Fes.
A Medina is the old town in any Moroccan city. Sometimes they are walled cities and in some places the walls have crumbled down. In Fes, within the walls of the Medina lies a vibrant and bustling center of commerce. This was the highlight of our stay in Fes and I was eager to make my way through the narrow alleys.
The first thing I saw as we got out of the car were the donkeys carrying sheep, camel and goat skins to the nearby tanneries. Moroccan leather is world famous (this is where the Italian designers come shopping) and Fes is where it all goes down. As we walked down the narrow cobbled street, flanked by old houses on all sides our guide told us to stay close and keep a firm hold on the kids. " If you get lost here, you'll spend the rest of your life here". Charming as the old town sights and smell are, I'm not sure I want to settle down here. So we huddled and clung to each other's hands for dear life as we walked single file. There was only room for one person going in opposite directions, but somehow it all seemed to flow smoothly. Fast forward inside the tannery where we are handed a sprig of mint. As we get nearer, the reason is clear. I need my mint if I want to breathe. So there I was, sprig in one hand, other hand tightly grasping a six year old. The stench is awful but the sights of those leather bags and jackets in red green blue orange and yellow is breathtaking.All organic colors. Orange, my favorite, is made from henna while yellow is made from the very expensive herb saffron. Naturally, yellow leather products were the most expensive. I fell in love with a yellow coat, but decided in the end to stick with my longtime ally, orange.
The Medina is huge. I mean gargantuan. With tiny narrow alleys that zigzag, curve, go uphill or down. On both sides are shops with handicrafts (carpets, leather, brass lamps, woodworkers), food vendors (brochetters which are barbecued meat on a stick, flaky cinnamon pastries, nuts and dates) and wrought iron furniture. A shopper's paradise, though the shopper might get lost in her meanderings.
A picture is worth a thousand words. So here are a few glimpses.